Junk Kouture, the world’s largest sustainable fashion competition for young people, has signed a strategic partnership with Rocket Sports, (the sports marketing agency co-founded by Sir Elton John and Luke Lloyd-Davies), as its lead brand partnerships agency in the UK and Europe.
Defined by co-founder Troy Armour as a “sport for creative kids”, Junk Kouture is an annual programme, bringing like-minded creatives between 13 – 18 years old, together, to create outstanding designs using nothing but recycled materials.
Kicking off in September each year, over 350,000 young people engage with the school programme seeking a place at one of 6 city finals – in Dublin, London, Milan, New York, Paris, and UAE – the top finalists from each final will then go on to compete at the annual Junk Kouture World Final in Abu Dhabi. An event Troy describes as the “Olympics for Creativity” – a night that will celebrate the creativity, colour, culture and vision of the World’s youth all done through sustainability.
Founded in 2010, Junk Kouture has grown into a global competition at the convergence of design, media, content, culture, and entertainment.
Rocket Sports will work with Junk Kouture to review its sponsorship proposition, construct a global and local partnership model, and establish new brand partnerships that are aligned to the core vision, to empower and enrich the lives of young people through creativity and sustainability.
This announcement follows the news that Etihad Airways has partnered with Junk Kouture as Global Airline Partner, and the inaugural World Final will be hosted at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on 11 January 2023.
“Sport and entertainment are closely linked, and Junk Kouture has created a platform that uniquely combines education programmes, rich multi-channel media, and live events. At Rocket Sports we are always looking for innovative ways brands can engage with audiences authentically and at scale and Junk Kouture offers this in spades” – Ben Lampkin, Managing Director, Rocket Sports
“Our ambition for Junk Kouture is to bring it into every classroom in the world, reaching 1 billion young people over the next 10 years. In this quest it is vital for us to find the right partners, that not only align with our vision and values but have the global experience to help us realise this ambition. We are excited to have the team at Rocket Sports join us on this journey” – Troy Armour, CEO & Founder, Junk Kouture
About Junk Kouture
Junk Kouture is a creative program for youth that promotes the importance of sustainability. Highlighting the fact that what we view as ‘junk’ can be recycled in useful and impactful ways, it challenges young people to create beautiful and interesting fashion outfits out of materials that are normally thrown away.
Founded in Ireland in 2010 by tech entrepreneur, and CEO of Junk Kouture, Troy Armour, the competition has recruited 100,000 participants to date, produced 15,000 distinctive designs, saved 40,000kg of waste from landfill and amazed packed crowds at 60 sold-out arena shows. Now, in 2021, Junk Kouture is expanding and going global with a 10-year ambition to enrich the lives of a billion young people through creativity and sustainability.
The Junk Kouture World Tour 2022 will take place in 6 major cities, including Dublin, London, Milan, Paris, New York City and Abu Dhabi, before the World Final, overseen by a panel of celebrity judges, taking place in January 2023.
The progressive competition is free to enter and open to all students between the ages of 13 and 18. Participants may join as individuals or in groups of up to three. Designed to create an inclusive community, educate people about the importance of protecting our planet and promoting creativity, students of all backgrounds and levels of experience are welcome to join.
More information on Junk Kouture can be found across social media @junkkouture and online www.junkkouture.com